Martha C. Nussbaum, "Justice for Animals: Practical Progress Through Philosophical Theory"

This talk took place online on October 20, 2023 and was hosted by the NYU Wild Animal Welfare Program.
About the talk
Animals suffer injustice at our hands: the cruelties of the factory farming industry, poaching and trophy hunting, assaults on the habitats of many creatures, and innumerable other instances of cruelty and neglect. Human domination is everywhere: in the seas, where marine mammals die from ingesting plastic; in the skies, where migratory birds die in large numbers from air pollution; and, obviously, on the land, where the habitats of many large mammals have been destroyed almost beyond repair. Addressing these large problems requires dedicated work and effort. But it also requires a good normative theory to direct our efforts. Nussbaum will argue that an approach based on her version of the Capabilities Approach is the one we need, and will show how it directs our efforts better than rival approaches.
About the speaker
Martha C. Nussbaum is the Ernst Freund Distinguished Service Professor of Law and Ethics, appointed in the Law School and Philosophy Department at the University of Chicago. She is an Associate in the Classics Department, the Divinity School, and the Political Science Department, a Member of the Committee on Southern Asian Studies, and a Board Member of the Human Rights Program. She has also taught at Harvard University, Brown University, and Oxford University. While teaching at Brown, Nussbaum was a research advisor at the World Institute for Development Economics Research, Helsinki, a part of the United Nations University. She has chaired the American Philosophical Association’s Committee on International Cooperation, the Committee on the Status of Women, and the Committee for Public Philosophy. Martha has received honorary degrees from 66 colleges and universities in the US, Canada, Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe. She is an Academician in the Academy of Finland, a Fellow of the British Academy, and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Philosophical Society, and the recipient of numerous awards. Her latest book, Justice for Animals: Our Collective Responsibility, appeared in January 2023.
About the NYU Wild Animal Welfare Program
The NYU Wild Animal Welfare Program aims to advance understanding about what wild animals are like, how humans and wild animals interact, and how humans can improve our interactions with wild animals at scale. We pursue this goal through foundational research in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences, as well as through outreach to academics, advocates, policymakers, and the general public.
Thank you to NYU Animal Studies for their generous co-sponsorship of this event.